Mission

To train and develop future leaders in military psychiatry who are prepared to provide high-quality, compassionate mental health care to service members and their families, ensuring operational readiness and holistic well-being.

Vision

To be recognized as a premier military psychiatry residency program, fostering innovation, excellence in clinical care, and leadership in the field of psychiatry.

Aims

• Provide comprehensive training in general and military-specific psychiatry.
• Foster leadership and innovation in psychiatric care within both military and civilian populations.
• Promote resident well-being and work-life balance.
• Encourage scholarly activity and research in psychiatry.

Weekly didactics include protected half-day focusing on both general psychiatry and military-specific issues as well as journal clubs and Morbidity & Mortality Conference (M&M). Residents are also encouraged to attend national psychiatric conferences, such as the American Psychiatric Association annual meeting. Monthly hospital-wide grand rounds. Quarterly combined (psychiatry, emergency medicine, family medicine) residency didactics.

Typical rotations per year are as follows, in 4-week blocks with 13 blocks / year:

• IV Ketamine Clinic
• Women’s Behavioral Health
• Psychiatry in the Media
• Sleep Medicine
• Pain Medicine
• Intensive Outpatient Program
• Air Force Squadron Officer School, 
• Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas
• Diversity Equity and Inclusion
• Research
• Board Prep
• More electives are currently in late stages of planning, including Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT), Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), child and adolescent inpatient psychiatry, and travel to other Army psychiatry residency programs

First and second year residents take call on a rotating basis, on Saturdays and Sundays day-time rounding and consults only. With some variation due to number of residents, first and second year residents typically take around 16 call shifts per calendar year. Third and fourth year residents take home call on a rotating basis, both weekdays and weekends with each shift covering a 24-hour period. Third and fourth year residents typically take 2-3 shifts per month. Most of third and fourth year call can be taken from home, with opportunities to do in-house assessments or acute management of ward patients as needed.

The curriculum incorporates military-specific training specific for psychiatric residents. As occupational psychiatrists, residents will learn medical standards, Army Regulations, and Air Force Instructions (AFIs) both through didactics and clinic.

Required courses include a month long “Intern Boot Camp” to give a basic foundation as well as various psychotherapy courses including: supportive therapy, motivational interviewing, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Current Procedure Terminology (CPT), and psychodynamic therapy. Base education in psychiatric conditions and treatments including medications is year-round.

The program implements the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) with faculty supervision during therapy didactics to help simulate various scenarios encountered in psychotherapy. The program also teaches the basics of AI so that residents can practice their therapy skills even when not with patients.

A structured leadership curriculum includes team-building exercises, peer mentorship, and progressive leadership roles in clinical and educational settings. Residents gain skills in managing psychiatric teams and leading healthcare initiatives. There is also opportunity for Professional Military Education (PME) such as Squadron Officer School. All residents will learn how to manage clinics and learn about military officer professional obligations, duties, roles, and skills in triaging consults and staff management.

Residents can complete scholarly projects during their training. Opportunities include participating in ongoing research studies, presenting at national conferences, and engaging in clinical or translational research projects. Multiple residents present research posters annually at a national level.

Residents participate in quality improvement projects aimed at enhancing patient care and safety. The program includes education on quality improvement principles and methodologies. Residents can participate in the Psychiatry Resident Education Committee to discuss and get help on quality improvement (QI) / process improvement (PI) projects. Involvement in QI/PI projects is a requirement of the residency program and there is dedicated time to support this every week during didactics.

Professional development is fostered through mentorship, leadership training, and support for attending professional conferences and mandatory military professional education. Residents are encouraged to engage with professional organizations and pursue opportunities for academic and clinical growth.

• Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center (primary site)
• Baylor Scott & White
• Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center (travel)
• Various Outpatient Behavioral Health Clinics on Fort Cavazos and Central Texas Veteran's Affairs (VA) Healthcare System

Applicants have an opportunity to rotate through the CRDAMC inpatient and consult psychiatry services, and in-house clinic services including child and adolescent psychiatry, addiction psychiatry, forensic psychiatry, intensive outpatient psychiatry, geriatric psychiatry, and neurology. We complete our core medicine requirements in house as well. Away rotation opportunities are expanding and currently include inpatient neurology and geriatric psychiatry.

We allow for both in-person and virtual (video) interviews. Please coordinate interviews through the program email. Most interviews will include two interviewers, a resident as well as either the program director or associate program director. We are interested in how you decided to engage in medicine and what drew you to psychiatry. In addition, we want to make sure that you're well informed about all your options and leave with an understanding of what it’s like to be a resident in our program. Please let us know what you’re looking for in a residency program and if you have any questions about the central Texas area. Ultimately, we want to ensure that you are a good fit for our program and hopefully will love your time here.

Program graduates take the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) exam, which is offered annually. To become fully board certified, applicants are eligible to take board certification exam 3 months following graduation. To be eligible to take specialty board exams, graduates must complete all pre-requisites required by the ABPN by September 1st. Boards are typically taken in September of the year of graduation. The ABPN website has more information on requirements.

Residents are expected to take on teaching roles, including supervising junior residents and medical students, leading discussions and some didactics lectures, and aim to present at conferences. All residents will get to hone their teaching skills by working with and training students of various year levels as well as more junior residents. There are ongoing hospital-wide didactics every few months for residents to help develop their skills as teachers and future faculty.

Residents have developed a close partnership with the hospital’s Women’s Health Clinic, presenting opportunity for interpersonal education and collaboration with nurse midwives and obstetric staff. Previous residents have also been asked to provide lectures at the embedded behavioral health clinics to educate social workers and social work interns, psychologists, and nurse practitioners on topics related to psychopathology and psychotropic prescribing. Our hospital has a family medicine and emergency medicine residency as well, which allows for academic collaboration. We have many medical students, physician assistant, and nurse practitioner students who rotate with us. Fort Cavazos has a social work intern program which has also provided educational and collaborative opportunities for our residents.

Our faculty includes specialists in areas such as Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Addiction Psychiatry, Geriatrics, and Forensic Psychiatry. Additionally, non-psychiatric ancillary faculty (Such as Psychologists and Licensed Clinical Social Workers) provide support with psychotherapy training.

Residents are paired with faculty mentors who provide guidance and support throughout their training. Mentorship focuses on personal as well as professional development, research, and career planning.

The program emphasizes resident well-being with initiatives like wellness days, access to mental health services, liberal leave policy, and structured time for personal and family needs. Residents participate in wellness activities and have access to a wellness committee for additional support.